On March 6, 2012, the world of higher education lost a great editor and a scholar. Christopher Brown-Syed, PhD, passed away that morning, leaving behind an excellent journal, several books, and a legacy of scholarship. Dr. Brown-Syed had edited Library & Archival Security since 1997, and we feel his loss keenly. Our sympathies go out to his family, friends, and colleagues for their loss.
The following memories were compiled from some of Dr. Brown-Syed's colleagues, many of whom knew him as an educator, an advisor, and a friend.
I met Chris at Wayne State University at the turn of the millennium. He was more than attuned to the burgeoning potential of the times. With Chris, I could walk into his office and suddenly be engaged in an online classroom video session—something that is becoming familiar today but not in 2000! His was the inquiring mind needed for our field and will be missed.
Fred Stielow, PhD, MLS
VP/Dean of Libraries & Educational Materials
American Public University System, Charles Town, WV
About Chris, I can say that he had an untiring positive spirit coupled with wide-ranging interests. This was imperative in his stewardship of the Library & Archival Security, covering as it does so many areas of practice where article solicitation was so important. In his early days, he had to recruit as well as fine-tune many articles. It was gratifying to see him continue under the Taylor & Francis imprimatur smoothly. I know he enjoyed editing the journal tremendously.
Bill Cohen
Publisher, Harrington Park Press, New York, NY
I was privileged to be a colleague of Chris at the School of Library and Information Science (then the Library and Information Science Program) at Wayne State University in Detroit. He was a friend as well as an associate. We spent many hours discussing students, teaching methods, and his particular interest in library automation. He was a talented individual whom students enjoyed having as an instructor. Chris was one of the most popular faculty members and advisers. He was always willing to spend time with students in discussing their work, family, and interests. His website on automation and library machines is a unique source for viewing library history. He talked of his children often, and his love for them was evident to all who knew him. As editor of the journal Library & Archival Security, he asked me to serve on its editorial board, and I was happy to work with him on journal issues, even after Chris left Wayne State and went to the library and information school at the University of Buffalo. He consistently sent me interesting articles to review for the journal. He was a dedicated editor, always trying to provide articles that would benefit archival and library work. He is greatly missed by his friends, colleagues, and readers of this journal.
Joseph J. Mika, Professor Emeritus
School of Library and Information Science
Wayne State University, Detroit, MI
I remember Chris Brown-Syed well from our time together at Wayne State University during the late 1990s and early 2000s. Chris was charming and charismatic and well-liked by students. I got to know him much better than some of my colleagues because we both had wide-ranging interests that intersected in areas such as film, things Canadian, and the image of librarians in popular culture. After he left Wayne, we sporadically kept in touch. I feel guilty that I never wrote the article that I promised to submit to the journal he edited. I have three favorite memories. The first is a magic moment on a sunny afternoon when the conversation flowed eloquently as we drank beers on the San Antonio Riverwalk. The second is his buying peanuts to feed the squirrels on the Wayne State campus when I knew that he was having financial difficulties. The last is his having to argue with the policeman that he was Canadian to get out of a ticket for going the wrong way on a one-way street to get to a party at my house. I’m saddened by the fact that we’ll never meet again.
Bob Holley
Professor, School of Library & Information Science
Wayne State University, Detroit, MI